Personal StatementWhoosh!A bed rushes by, surrounded by about 6 medical staff. “What’s going on?” I immediately thought with apprehension. I knew that whatever happened, it wasn't ideal. Making sure not to get in the way, I stood on tiptoe to see what was requiring so much attention. To my astonishment, I saw a little bright pink girl the size of a coin. It couldn't be bigger than two coins lying side by side. She was struggling! Even with all the procedures the doctors performed to save her life, she was the one doing the most work. He was a 24 week premature baby. I had never seen anything so fragile and so durable in my life. Every time she breathed, her lungs completely collapsed. To inhale, she had to remove everything from her back, from her ribcage, and inflate her lungs. She was a powerhouse! Instinctively, she does everything she can to stay alive. She died a few hours later. She was the youngest and smallest baby born alive at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital. We will never know their full potential, and the loss of someone's opportunity to become an asset to society is something I cannot tolerate. Thus, my desire to become a neonatologist was affirmed. I wrote this story in 2009, in my medical school entrance personal statement. This is still true; Now 5 years later this little girl may have survived, 23 weeks old are currently the youngest children surviving in most hospitals, which seems like a miracle to me given what I witnessed in this crib. Medicine is evolving and I want to go further. The next time I entered a neonatal intensive care unit was as a fourth-year medical student. This time, not as a spectator, but as a medical professional expected... middle of paper ...... high school diploma at 16, college at 19, master's degree at 21. I am a detail-oriented person who believes in a hierarchy and that it is necessary to put in a tremendous amount of work up front to build character and appreciation for those who came before you. Finally and most importantly, is the fact that I understand firsthand that this age is where you have the ability to make the most change. My brother is autistic and I know what it's like to not get early intervention and I want better for my patients. This reality, combined with my enthusiasm for the potential of medicine, pushes me to have the courage to express myself fully. Not only do I want better for my patients, but I know I can do better. With the addition of complementary medicine, I look forward to being part of a generation that enriches the field of medicine..